The Plan

Books

Higher, Higher! by Leslie Patricelli
I Want to Be an Astronaut by Byron Batron
The Way Back Home by Oliver Jeffers
Zoom! Zoom! Zoom! I’m Off to the Moon! by Dan Yaccarino

Extension Activities

Flannelboard: “Four Little Rockets”
Four little rockets winking at me
One shot off and then there were three!
Three little rockets with nothing to do
One shot off, and then there were two!
Two little rockets afraid of the sun
One shot off, and then there was one!
One little rocket alone is no fun
It shot off, and then there were none!

Action Rhyme: “Moon Ride”
Do you want to go up with me to the moon? (point to friend, then sky)
Let’s get in our rocket ship and blast off soon! (climb in, blast off)
Faster and faster we reach to the sky (jump and reach)
Isn’t it fun to be able to fly? (spread arms)
We’re on the moon, now all take a look (look)
Sit back down, and I’ll read you a book (sit)
Credit: SurLaLune Storytime

Action Song: “If You’re Going to the Moon”
If you’re going to the moon, wear your boots
If you’re going to the moon, wear your boots
If you’re going to the moon, this is what you have to do
If you’re going to the moon, wear your boots
(gloves, helmet, suit, etc.)
Credit: Mel’s Desk

Craft

You might be able to tell that I was getting tired of thinking of crafts by the end of summer, since this session’s craft was simple foam stickers to make a solar system. But the kids LOVE stickers, so it was definitely well-received even if I didn’t make an amazing creation for them to do.

How It Went

This was a great storytime session. I am a giant space NERD and get so excited about it — the kids just feed off of that excitement. Their favorite books were “Higher, Higher” and “I Want to Be An Astronaut.” I also snuck in a lot of learning during these books, all about how there’s no gravity in space and that the food has to be packaged funny. I hope that I now have little budding astronauts running around the library!

Fingerplay/Puppets: “Five Little Monsters Jumping on the Bed”
Five little monsters jumping on the bed
One fell off and bumped his head
Mommy called the doctor and the doctor said,
“No more monsters jumping on the bed!”
Credit: Modified from childhood

Song: “Monster Pokey”
You put your claws in, you take your claws out
You put your claws in and you shake them all about!
You do the wild rumpus and you turn yourself about!
That’s what it’s all about! (horns, tail, big feet, and hairy self)
Credit: Perry Public Library

Craft

Today’s craft came from Pinterest. I simply put out a ton of cardstock scraps and let the kids make their own monsters. Most of the kids were super happy to rip the paper, but I did have a few parents request scissors and I passed them out to adults only.

The Plan

Since the CSLP summer theme was “Dream Big, Read,” I decided to do themed storytimes. (I did with 2010’s “Make a Splash” and I did not with 2011’s “One World, Many Stories.” I am planning on using the theme in my storytimes for next year’s “Dig Into Reading.”) I really wanted to make sure that my monster storytime had different stories than the last two times I did monster in 2010 and 2011. At this storytime, it should come as no surprise that “The Monster at the End of This Book” was the most well-received. I’m silly for having omitting it previously! We also had a lot of fun with the finger puppets that I made and making them jump on the bed!

Song: “I’m a Little Firefly” (I’m a Little Teapot)
I’m a little firefly
Look at me!
I’m as happy as I can be.
See my light flicker
And shine so bright
Now watch me fly
Into the night!
Credit: Preschool Education

Song: “Flutter, Flutter Little Bat”
Flutter, flutter little bat
How I wonder where you’re at
Up above the midnight sky
Peeking down with black eyes
Flutter, flutter little bat
How I wonder where you’re at
Credit: Library Palooza

Craft

This was an Oriental Trading kit that I purchased. A co-worker traced her hands on the foam and cut them out ahead of time so that the kids had an easier time with the activity. Everything else was self-stick.

How It Went

This was a great storytime! The variety in it really appealed to everyone and I was SO GLAD that I didn’t have a single storytime on each of the nocturnal animals. Their favorite book was “The Very Lonely Firefly,” and I recently purchased a library copy so that I knew the fireflies would light up at the end! All of the extension activities went over very well, but the best part was when I brought out our bat finger puppet. The kids were delighted and all of them politely came up and greeted batty before we sang our song!

Fingerplay: “Dance Your Fingers Up”
Dance your fingers up, dance your fingers down
Dance you fingers to the side, dance them all around
Dance them on your shoulders, dance them on your head
Dance them on your tummy, and put them all to bed
Credit: Best Kids Book Site

Rhyme: “Good Night”
One fluffy quilt on my bed,
Two little pillows on my head,
Three teddy bears to hold tight
Four kisses from Mom for a restful night,
Five hugs from Dad, and off goes my light!
Good night!
Credit: Canton Public Library

Song: “Twinkle, Twinkle”
Credit: Childhood

Craft

This AMAZING moon craft came courtesy of Andrea at Rovingfiddlehead Kitlit. We glued macaroni to the paper plates and then put a layer of tinfoil over it. The macaroni made some craters and other imperfections on the moon. Since we don’t have anything but glue sticks, we did have to use Tacky Glue, so I handed out bottles to our adults. Luckily, everything worked out!

How It Went

This was my storytime during Chicago’s 100 degree four-day heat warning. I still had eight families come out to brave the weather! (Honestly, I really consider that a very good program attendance number, all things considering!) It made this a very subdued storytime, which was okay. We had a great response to “Fly, Blanky, Fly!” and “Little Quack’s Bedtime.” And the movement activities were very well-received overall.

Action Rhyme: “Wide-Eyed Owl”
There’s a wide-eyed owl (circle your eyes with your hands)
With a pointed nose (make a beak with your fingers)
Two pointed ears (make ears with your fingers)
And claws for toes (wiggle your “claws”)
He lives way up in the tree (point way up)
And when he looks at you (point to children)
He flaps his wings (flap your wings)
And says, “Whoo! Whoo!” (say “whoo”)
Credit: Wilmette Public Library

Action Song: “Owl Hokey Pokey”
You put your right wing in, you put your right wing out
You put your right wing in, and you flap it all about
You do the hokey pokey and you fly yourself around
That’s what it’s all about! Hoot, hoot!
Credit: Ms. Hegna’s Storytime

This was a craft that was inspired by this blog post, at Meet the Dubiens. (I originally saw this as a Pinterest post, but without a link back. Luckily, I recognized Jill’s watermark!) I used the template that Jill links to, but I did balk on the handprint painting when it came time for storytime to start. Instead, I pulled out our feather bin and let the kids go at it!

How It Went

This is very similar to the owl theme that I did in the fall, but I knew I had to repeat it for the CSLP theme of “Dream Big, Read!” This time around “Owl Babies” was the big hit, followed by “A Book of Sleep.” The extension activities went AWESOME and they had a great time shaking their tails in the Owl Hokey Pokey. We made a lot of great connections in this storytime about owls sleeping at night and having wide-eyes so they could see in the dark. It was a very rewarding storytime to be at!

The Plan

Books

Into the Outdoors by Susan Gal
Maisy Goes Camping by Lucy Cousins
Scare a Bear by Kathy-Jo Wargin
Sheep Take a Hike by Nancy Shaw

Extension Activities

Flannelboard: “Campfire Hokey Pokey”
You put your marshmallow in, you take your marshmallow out
You put your marshmallow in and you shake it all about
You do the campfire pokey and you turn yourself about,
That’s what it’s all about!
(Other verses include hotdog, potato, popcorn, etc.)

Action Rhyme: “We’re Going on a Bear Hunt”
We’re going on a bear hunt (We’re going on a bear hunt)
Gonna catch a big one (Gonna catch a big one)
I’m not scared (I’m not scared)
What a beautiful day! (What a beautiful day!)
Oh look! It’s some long, wavy grass!
Can’t go under it (Can’t go under it)
Can’t go over it (Can’t go over it)
Can’t go around it (Can’t go around it)
Gotta go through it (Gotta go through it!)
(Trees, River, Storm, Cave, etc. until you meet a bear; then run back!)
Credit: Library School

Fingerplay: “Here is the Camper”
Here is the camper (hold up finger)
Here is the tent (bend fingers of other hand like tent)
He crawls inside on a summer night (finger goes under)
Fireflies flicker in a friendly way (flicker your hands)
All is calm till the light of day (head on folded hands)
Credit: Sturgis Kids

Song: “Twinkle Twinkle”

Craft

This was another pre-packaged craft from Oriental Trading. I had a lot of sibling sets at storytime, and this was definitely a reach for the youngest kids, so I would suggest it for preschool storytime and up. Luckily, I had some great moms who let their little ones make whatever kind of mishmash campfire they wanted!

How It Went

I wasn’t sure how this theme would work, because I honestly wasn’t sure if any of my kids had ever been camping. Luckily, lots of kids HAD been camping! I started with “Into the Outdoors” which turned out to be a great primer for those who hadn’t gone camping before. “Going on a Bear Hunt” was a RIDICULOUS good time!! I already made a flannelboard to go with it because I know I will be repeating it. The transition between “Maisy Goes Camping” and “Five Little Kernels” was amazingly (not planned) fluid since Maisy and her friends pop out of their tent and that’s the sound that popcorn makes! This was, overall, just a wonderful amazing storytime and a great send-off as I got ready to go to ALA Annual.

Action Rhyme: “Bend and Stretch”
Bend and stretch, reach for the stars
There goes Jupiter, here comes Mars
Bend and stretch and reach for the sky
Stand on tip-e-toe, oh so high!
Credit: Preschool Kids

Action Rhyme: “Moon Ride”
Do you want to go up with me to the moon? (point up)
Let’s get in our rocket ship and blast off soon! (climb in, seat belt, blast off)
Faster and faster we reach to the sky (jump and reach)
Isn’t it fun to be able to fly? (hands out)
We’re on the moon, now all take a look (look around)
Sit back down, and I’ll read you a book. (sit down)
Credit: SurLaLune Storytime

Song: “Twinkle, Twinkle”

Craft

This was a scratch art kit purchased from Oriental Trading. If you haven’t used scratch art at your storytimes yet, I would highly suggest it!

How It Went

This was such a great, GREAT storytime session. We were packed — I hit my highest ever attendance for a storytime and I think everyone had a wonderful time. I could not even pick a favorite book because they all went over so well. I think that “Papa, Please Get the Moon for Me” might have edged the others out because of the flaps/pop-ups, but other than that, all the books were on equal footing. They had a great time with the extension activities and the craft was adored by all. Afterwards, I had to direct several parents on where to buy their own scratch art because it was such a hit!